The Karate Kid remains one of the most beloved ’80s movies of all-time. The classic underdog story follows Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio), an East Coast transplant who becomes bullied by a gang of high-school teenagers upon arriving in California with his single mother. Desperate to learn how to defend himself, Daniel meets an unlikely mentor in Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita), a zen-like custodian and martial arts master who shares the same apartment complex.
Released on June 22, 1984, The Karate Kid became a massive hit, turning an $8 million budget into a $90 million moneymaker per Box Office Mojo. The film also spawned three sequels, a 2010 reboot, and a sequel TV series entitled Cobra Kai that picks up where the original movies left off. Here’s what went into making the movie that had an entire generation saying “Wax on, wax off.”
Casting Daniel LaRusso
Ralph Macchio’s co-star, William Zabka, told Yahoo Movies! that producer Jerry Weintraub offered both Sean Penn and Charlie Sheen the role of Daniel LaRusso. It is unclear why they declined.
In addition, Clint Eastwood’s son Kyle Eastwood auditioned for the role. According to the book “Film and Television In-Jokes,” when Kyle failed to get the part, Clint Eastwood had all Coca-Cola products banned from his movies, as Coca-Cola owned Karate Kid distributor Columbia Pictures at the time.
Coca-Cola Product Placement
Speaking of Coca-Cola, the corporation mandated that several of its products be displayed onscreen during the film. Ralph Macchio objected to this, especially the breakfast scene that required him to say “Minute Maid,” the orange juice brand owned by Coca-Cola at the time.
Macchio later revealed in an interview with Entertainment Tonight that in one scene, he deliberately shrouded a Sprite can logo with his hand in protest. When told to re-shoot the scene, Macchio exposed the logo for as little screen time as possible.
Casting Mr. Miyagi
Prior to casting Pat Morita in the iconic role of Mr. Miyagi, two other revered Japanese actors were in consideration, according to a story in The Hollywood Reporter. Toshiro Mifune, star of several Akira Kurosawa films, gave a great audition as Mr. Miyagi. However, his performance was deemed a bit too serious for the role.
Later, Japanese actor Mako Iwamatsu was considered for the role, but he was already committed to making Conan the Barbarian. While producers balked at the idea of casting a comedian in the role, Morita ultimately won the job.
Tournament Referee
The referee in the tournament at the end of the movie is played by real-life martial artist Pat E. Johnson. In addition to being a karate expert, Johnson was a former student of Chuck Norris.
In addition to appearing onscreen, Johnson also served as the primary fight consultant and combat choreographer for the film production. Oddly enough, Chuck Norris had long been rumored to have been offered the role of Cobra Kai sensei John Kreese (Martin Kove), but Norris claims that it’s just a myth.
Halloween Dance Fight
During the fight outside the Halloween party in which Daniel is accosted by several Cobra Kai members, Ralph Macchio sustained an injury when being kicked too hard according to the DVD commentary.
However, the Cobra Kai gang got it much worse. Several of the actors complained that Pat Morita’s stunt-double, real-life martial artist Fumio Demura, kept hitting too hard and causing multiple ruined takes. Demura then told producers that they could get the shot in one take if they allowed him to perform the stunts his way, and they agreed.
“You’re The Best” Song
One of the most memorable scenes in the film comes when Joe Esposito’s song, “You’re The Best,” plays along with the karate tournament montage. However, the song was originally written for another movie altogether.
A behind-the-scenes featurette on the DVD reveals that the song was originally composed for use inRocky III, which is why the lyrics mention history repeating itself. Rocky III producers turned down the song in favor of Survivor’s now-iconic “Eye of the Tiger.” The two film franchises also share another connection— director John G. Avildsen.
Deleted Fight Scenes
At least two fight scenes between Daniel and Johnny were originally written to take place on school grounds. Both were nixed before filming began, but can be found in the original screenplay.
The first fight began with Daniel buying Ali (Elisabeth Shue) lunch in the school cafeteria. Johnny takes offense and sneaks a slice of blueberry pie onto Daniel’s chair. Daniel sits on the pie and rises in embarrassment before boldly covering Johnny’s shirt with the leftovers. A fight then ensues. The second skirmish took place at the water fountain when Danny takes a sip and looks up to find Johnny waiting to confront him.
1948 Ford Super De Luxe
The classic yellow car that Mr. Miyagi gives to Daniel-San on his 16th birthday is a 1948 Ford Super De Luxe. Macchio told Entertainment Tonight that once production wrapped, producer Jerry Weintraub gave him the car to keep as a memento and a token of gratitude.
Ralph Macchio still owns the vehicle to this day and even agreed to allow it to be reused in the 2018 sequel series Cobra Kai.
Drunken Miyagi
Prior to the release of the film, Columbia studio execs wanted Avildsen to cut the scene in which a drunken Mr. Miyagi laments the death of his wife on their wedding anniversary, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Avildsen was adamant about keeping the scene and fought tooth and nail with the studio for it to remain. Avildsen later said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that the emotional scene is what ultimately landed Pat Morita an Academy Award nomination for his role as Mr. Miyagi.
Original Ending
The original ending of The Karate Kid is actually the scene that opens The Karate Kid Part II, according to the original screenplay. Following Daniel’s victory at the All Valley Karate Tournament, a scene was written to follow the main characters into the parking lot. Kreese berates Johnny for losing and breaks his second-place trophy.
Although the scene was written for The Karate Kid, it was not filmed until the sequel was in production as it had already been decided it wouldn’t be the first film’s ending.
